Jinchuriki Alliance
by KingOfStories01
Summary: Yagura, freed from Madara Uchiha's control, has decided to warn the other eight Jinchūriki of the threat against them.  When Naruto is warned, he discovers a group of people who not only accept him, but people who become the family he never had before...
1. Chapter 1: Meeting

**This is a fan fiction based off of Naruto, with a twist. What if the ****Jinchūriki had discovered they were being hunted and decided to unite to keep themselves alive? Here's my answer to that question.**

Two Chunin sat outside the gate to the Leaf Village. Both of them were tired, but that was to be expected during a night shift. They both began to talk about the Third Hokage, wondering who he was going to pick as his successor, as he was definitely getting on in his age. However, after a few moments of discussion, they were interrupted by an unusual sight.

A man was walking calmly toward the village. He wore bright red armor and had a straw hat which hung over his face. From the back of his armor came some weird jets of smoke, which seemed to resemble steam.

The two Chunin stopped the man at the gate and looked at the man's headband, noting he was from Iwagakure. He was covered almost completely in armor, except for a small strip of skin where his eyes were. One of the Chunin said, "Hey, tell us who you are! We've never seen your type around here before."

The ninja looked at him and said, "Sure, I got nothing to hide. I am known as Han the Horse in my home village of Iwagakure. I was sent here to preform a mission. You see, I am a steam user and my skill with steam is legendary. So, I was asked to come here to prepare for a performance tomorrow. I was to meet my employer down at the Leaf Highway."

The ninjas looked at each other, then said, "Well, we don't know much about you. I guess we'll take you two the meetings spot, just to be safe."

Han looked at them and said kindly, "Sure, why not. I might get lost if I go on my own. Thank you."

With that, the three ninja began walking down the road. As they walked down the streets, the Chunin took an almost direct path, but they paused in front of a house. The two Chunin talked back and forth for a moment, wondering whether or not they should just ignore the house or go around it.

His interest heightened, Han said, "What is it? Is there a problem with this house, like a demon or something?"

One of the Chunin said, "Yeah, you could say that. The Black Sheep of Konoha lives here. He's an absolute failure in virtually everything he does and no one likes. Can't exactly blame those who hate him, they got good reason to do so..."

Han placed his hands on the backs of the two shinobi and said, "I believe I have heard enough. I know who I am looking for." Before either one could react, Han launched two jets of steam from his palms, sending the two ninja flying into a wall, making them lose consciousness.

Han grinned, then placed his hand on the ground, forming hand signs with his other hand. The ground began to heat up, becoming red in color. A few feet away, a large hole opened up and seven people walked out of the hole.

Gaara, the one who had been the one to create the hole using his sand jutsu, said, ""I see you sent the signal."

Yagura said, "I'm guessing that means you have found our little fox?"

Han nodded and said, "It's in that house, over there. I can tell, since two Chunin planned to avoid that that house. It's a common thing for us, be avoided like the plague."

Rōshi sighed and said ,"You knocked out the two of them, didn't you?"

Han grinned under his mask sheepishly and said, "Well, I didn't exactly know what to do, they insisted on following me."

Yugito Nii, the planner for the mission, said, "That was to be expected. There was no easy way to do this, after all. Now, Fū, please do what you do best."

Fū nodded and walked over to the two unconscious men. She took off her large canister and placed it on the ground, then took some powder from the canister and placed it on the laps of the two men. She formed a few hand signs and the men grunted at the effects of her jutsu, then lapsed into unconsciousness. She stood up and said, "They'll probably forget everything up to before they met Han."

Yugito nodded and said, "You're up, Yagura." Yagura nodded and leaped atop a tall lamppost, then made a few hand signs. A thin mist began to fall around the village, one that was not too thick as too arouse suspicion, but not too thin that it was ineffective at hiding them.

Gaara then said, "I'll stay here and make sure no one finds our escape route."

Utakata nodded and said, "I'll stay with him as well. If we need to abort the mission, I'll send along a bubble to tell you guys."

The others looked at Yagura, who said, "Go on. I'll keep my jutsu up."

Killer Bee, Han, Yugito, Fū, and Rōshi all crept through the mists, keeping their eye on their destination. Luckily for them, no one passed them on their way to Naruto's house. They all leaped in front of his door and walked over to it, looking at the lock. Killer Bee chuckled and tapped the door, then stood back and covered his finger in ink and wiped the lock down. After a few moments of fiddling with the door, he unlocked the door and quietly opened it, followed by Fū, and Rōshi, while Han and Yugito kept an eye out for anything.

Naruto was seen lying on his bed, sleeping. The three ninja began to close various doors and windows, so that anything they did would not alert anyone nearby. Fū finished first and walked up to the bed, then turned to the others and said, "He's here. He's asleep, so we'll need to wake him. Who will do it?"

Rōshi looked and said, "Why don't you wake him? You're closest and the only one who is done with her side of the room."

Killer Bee nodded and said, "Yo, you gotta take the initiative, you gotta go for it."

Fū said, "Fine, I'll do it, as long as we stop Bee from rapping. If he keeps going, I'm going to kill him." Killer Bee shrugged and closed the last door. Fū inched calmly over to Naruto and softly patted him on the head.

Just as she patted him on the head, Naruto's body vanished in a puff of smoke, replaced by a log. Fū gasped and Rōshi turned to look, while Killer Bee began to examine the room. Suddenly,  
Naruto leaped out from a hidden compartment in his roof and swung his fist right at Killer Bee.

His punch connected straight with Killer Bee's chest, but Bee merely shrugged it off and went to grab Naruto. However, Naruto barely dodged the grab and flipped away from Bee, flying at Rōshi, aiming a kick for Rōshi's head. However, Rōshi blocked Naruto's kick just as easily as Bee had countered Naruto's punch.

Naruto landed on his feet and grunted angrily at his lack of skill. He then realized that the third person there was a lot short and younger looking, so he could try and take her. He sprung off his feet and swung out his elbow at her.

Fū, expecting to be attacked, grabbed her canister in hopes of defending herself. She was a bit late, though, and was knocked onto her back. As she fell, her canister fell onto the ground a a crack formed on it, spilling powder into the air.

Naruto rushed to attack her again, but ran into the powdery air and began to cough as he inhaled some of the powder. Fū, realizing her opportunity, began to make hand seals as fast as she could. Before Naruto could recover, Fū said, "Hey, please calm down. We'd like to talk, that's all. Just relax, okay?"

Naruto, to his shock, felt himself relax and his aggression decrease. He said, despite not wanting to, "Yeah... I'm getting too worked up. I should just relax."

Fū smiled and said, "Listen, come with us. We're just going to talk for a while. We promise we won't hurt you at all, nothing of the sort. We need to discuss something with you."

Naruto said, once more against his will, "I suppose I can come with you. You seem like a nice bunch, and I really don't have anything to lose."

Fū smiled, then lowered her hands. Naruto suddenly felt the weird sensation slip away from him, but he had no choice. The ninja had presented their suggestion to him, and two of them were definitely more powerful then he was. In this situation, Naruto could only agree.

Killer Bee opened his front door all the way. Naruto was shocked to see ink dripping from the door, then realized that the entire outside was covered in a thick mist. However, his attention was soon directed a lot quicker to the people right outside the door.

One of the beings was tall and almost covered in dark red armor, with only a thin line of a torn black vest. The man had a large hat on, the same color as his armor, and his entire face was covered by either the armor, a Iwagakure headband, or a white headdress, only revealing rather tanned skin around his eyes.

The other person there was wearing a black outfit that covered everything up to her head completely. Her hair was a light blond and was tied into a ponytail that descended to her mid-back. She wore a Kumogakure headband.

Now that he was in light, Naruto finally saw the three people who had taken him more clearly. The tallest of the three, the one he had first attacked, was tall and dark-skinned, but not as tall as the Iwagakure giant. Like the blond, he was wearing a Kumogakure headband.

The other male was shorter and much older, wearing a crown-shaped forehead protector with the Iwagakure symbol. He, too, was armored, but not to such an extent as the other Iwagakure ninja. He spotted a red mane of hair, which spouted back in an odd fashion.

Finally, the only other girl present seemed to be about his age and had mint-green hair. She wore no headband, but had an orange ribbon in her hair. Her most striking feature were her dark amber eyes.

Rōshi nodded at Yugito, who leaped over the overhang of his house. Han and Killer Bee followed, but Rōshi and Fū both waited for Naruto. Sighing, he leaped over the ledge and landed on the ground, followed by the other two. They then spotted the three others and rushed after them.

After a minute of running, Naruto saw the large, armored man kneeling on the ground, the ground glowing red. A hole then opened up as two ninjas stood up, one red haired and carrying a gourd, while the other was black haired and was carrying an unusual wind instrument. They both looked at Naruto, then the guy with the instrument blew on it, causing a bubble to rise into the air. Moments later, a person landed behind Naruto. He was shorter then Naruto and had deep violet eyes, with a scar on his left eye. All the ninja present, they went down the hole the red-haired boy was making. Naruto, shrugging, followed silently.

After a few hours of walking underground, the nine ninja found a spot marked with a green light. Gaara held up his hands and shoved them upward, causing the ground to shudder, then blast upward. The ground landed in a neat pile on the ground, and everyone walked out of the hole.

The house was huge, almost like a mansion, with gray walls and a large staircase leading to a second floor, which was just as large as the first floor.. Displayed prominently throughout the building were various weapons of enormous sizes and large banners that portrayed the Iwagakure symbol. Rōshi said, "Well, here it is, my humble abode. Now, we need to talk to you, Naruto. This is important."

Fū walked over to Rōshi and said, "Hey, that idea's no good at all. With all your cryptic old-man talk and overly-grim attitude, you'd scare him off. All you guys would have no idea how to talk to some kid my age." Turning to Yagura, she asked, "Well, Gaara and I are about his age. We could talk with him, couldn't we?"

Yagura shrugged and said, "I suppose so. That'll probably be a good idea, in retrospect. We're not kids like you guys are, we know only how to deal with adults like ourselves. Okay, you can tell him. But, if you can't handle it, we're talking to him directly."

Fū nodded as Yagura left, then stuck her tongue out at him when no one but Gaara and Naruto were looking. Gaara laughed at Fu's actions, and even Naruto grinned slightly. Fū walked over to the two of them, then motioned down a hallway. Gaara nodded and began walking, but Naruto paused, curious as to what the planned to tell him. Fū smiled and grabbed his hand, dragging him along after them.

After a few moments of walking, the trio reached an open garden in the mansion, which was filled with many exotic plants and, in the center, a large marble fountain, surrounded by marble seats. Fū rushed over to one of the nearest seats and sat Naruto down on it. She then proceeded to sit down on another, and Gaara sat down on a third seat.

Gaara looked at Naruto, as if to introduce himself, but couldn't find the words. Fū smiled and said, "Don't worry, Gaara, I got this. My name is Fū Keiteki. And, as you could guess, the shy one here is Gaara."

Naruto smiled and said, "Heh, I'm Naruto Uzumaki! And I am going to become the next Hokage!"

Fū and Gaara looked at each other, then they chuckled. Fū said, "Naruto Uzumaki, the next Hokage, huh? You have some really big dreams, Naruto. We're gonna get along perfectly."

Gaara said, "But, you gotta know what might impede your efforts. Listen, Naruto... you probably won't remember the fine details, but do you recall there being an attack on the Leaf Village about twelve years ago?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head and said, "Oh... uh... well, I don't recall much. I think I was about a few hours old or so. People really don't like to mention the incident, but I've gathered that the attacker was known as the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox."

Fū said, "Well, not to be mean or anything, but there's a reason the incident ended a few hours after birth. You see... you have the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox sealed within your very body."

Naruto gasped and said, "Wait... you're kidding, right? You gotta be..." He then trailed off as Fū and Gaara both shook their heads. He said, "No... no wonder they didn't like me. It's absurd... hold on, how do you even know I have the Demon Fox inside me?"

Fū said, "Well, it's actually very simple, if you consider it. There are nine of us here, including you, there are a total of nine tailed demons, and we all sought you out, so..."

Naruto thought for a moment, then cried out, "You... you don't mean... you all have...?"

Gaara said, "Tailed demon, yes. I possess a demon known as the One-Tailed Shukaku, and Fū has the Seven-Tailed Horned Beetle. Trust me, life hasn't been pleasant for any of us. But, we've found these guys, and they understand us."

Fū said, "This is a lot to take in, but we're offering the chance to have us as allies, people who have gone through what you went through."

Naruto thought about the possibility for a while, then shook his head and said, "Truthfully, no thanks. I like you guys and everything, but Konoha is my home. I'm not going to leave it, no matter how much I'm not wanted."

A voice behind the three said, "Indeed, you may not want to leave, but that does not mean we cannot help you. Quite the opposite."

The three turned and saw the other six Jinchūriki standing before them. The speaker, Yagura, said, "We're not telling you to stay with us. We'd be crazy, there'd be an international incident before long. But, we're going to be your friends and allies. There are tough times ahead, and you'll need our help."

Naruto thought for a moment, then grinned and said, "Sure, I'll help you guys." He then paused, then asked, "But, wait, you guys all live in different villages. Isn't that going to make meeting you guys impossible?"

Fū smiled and said, "Hey, don't go underestimating us. I'm not only here for my persuasive skills." She grinned and slapped one of many small pouches on her contained, dropping a scroll into her hands. She held it out and said, "This is a summoning scroll. However, the summons... are each one of us. I need you to write your name in blood on here, then add a bit of blood to the outer cover. You'll be able to summon us as you please."

As Naruto followed Fū's instructions, Yagura said, "We're your allies, from now on. Use that scroll to summon us, but don't do it unless you need to. We're going to help you, but you shouldn't learn to depend on us. We're going to help you, Gaara, and Fū for the next year or so. We need to make sure you all pass and become Genin. Right now, what we're doing is illegal."

Naruto finished signing the scroll and licked his fingers of the blood as he said, "I see. Oh, that reminds me, since this is illegal, how do you plan on getting us back?"

Yagura smiled calmly and said, "Gaara and Fū both found ways to sneak out. They'll get back okay. But, you? I'll escort you back on my own. As the Mizukage, I should be allowed to explain my position without much trouble. I'll say you were kidnapped and I saved you."

Killer Bee said, "Well, I gotta get going. I gotta get myself to bed, I got a mission tomorrow." He smiled and took Yugito's hand, then opened the door and left calmly.

Han stood up as well and said, "Hm... I'll get going as well. I need to find that man, I lost a lot of time here." He stood up and said, "I'll see you guys again. It was very nice meeting you, Naruto... Naruto... Naruto..." He bowed and left through the door as well.

Naruto glanced at Yagura, a bit confused by Han's repeating of his name. Yagura smiled and said, "He is a bit forgetful at times. He can concentrate very well on certain things, but forgets to do other things. He often repeats new things to himself to make sure he won't forget." Yagura stood up and continued, "But I need to go grab my tools. I'll be back soon, just stay here."

Yagura went up the stairs calmly, humming to himself. A few moments later, Utakata yawned and said, "I'm getting a bit tired. Hey, Rōshi, you mind helping me set up my bed? I can't figure out these beds to save my life."

Rōshi chuckled and said, "I see you still don't understand what it was like back then, all years ago. Very well, I'll go help you." He stood up and bowed to the three kids, then turned and went up the stairs with Utakata.

Fū smiled as the ninja left, then said, "Well, we gotta be going soon. We're not really liked back home. It was really nice meeting you, Naruto."

Gaara said, "Hey, hold on, Fū. Naruto needs friend he can count on. Friends like you and I. We managed to get by through our friendship, and he'll need to do the same."

Fū thought for a moment, then said, "That's right. Naruto, from now on, Gaara and I are gonna be your best of friends! No matter what happens, we're gonna stick together, through thick and thin. For all our sakes!"

Naruto paused, a bit shocked at how quickly they accepted him, but he grinned back just as quickly and said, "The friendship won't be one-sided! I'll be your friend till the end as well!"

Gaara smiled and said, "I'm going to get going. I'm glad I made a new friend today. Good luck." As he turned to leave, he thought, _Yagura really was right. Yashumaru didn't want me to be alone forever, he wanted me to make friends. If only that man hadn't killed you... _He opened the door and nodded to Fū and Naruto, then left silently.

Fū turned to look at Naruto, then smiled and said, "Well, I'll see you again at some point. Just to make absolutely sure you don't forget me, I'll give you a present to remember me by." She hugged him tightly, wrapping her arms around his neck. She smiled and rushed out the door.

Naruto, his face a bit red, said, "Huh... she's a very weird girl. Oh, well." He turned around and saw Yagura coming down the steps. His blush fading away, he said, "I guess it's time we head back?"

Yagura chuckled and said, "Indeed. But perhaps you should dress a bit warmer. Your cheeks were red." Naruto was about to retort when Yagura chuckled and said, "Don't worry. I'm just joking. Let's go. On the way there, I'll show you how to do a summoning."

Naruto's eyes lit up immediately and he rushed ahead, happy to learn a new jutsu, as Yagura followed him from behind. He silently closed the door and smiled, glad to gain a new ally to his cause.

**So, yeah, this is my first fan-fiction. Here's an overview, if it's confusing (or too long to get your attention, I'll try to slow it down later):**

***The eight other Jinchūriki have entered the Leaf Village to ally Naruto with themselves so as to protect themselves from an evil group Yagura has heard of.**

***Fū, Rōshi, and Killer Bee managed to convince Naruto of their intentions and Naruto went with the ninja to learn more.**

***After arriving at the hideout, which is Rōshi's house, Fū and Gaara talked with Naruto. They all become fast friends and promise to keep it that way.**

***Yagura and the others convince Naruto to join their alliance. They then have Naruto sign a summoning contract so that he can summon his allies and they can summon him.**

***All the Jinchūriki decided to head home, and Yagura decided to accompany Naruto. After most of the others left, except Utakata and Rōshi (who are living at Rōshi's house for the time being), **Fū**, Gaara and Naruto all promise to meet again, as friends. **Fū** is shown to be developing a crush on Naruto and a tiny portion of Gaara's past is hinted at.**

**So, yeah, this is going to focus a lot on all the Jinchūriki, but I'm pairing Naruto and Fū together. Please don't yell at me, I'm going what I do. I personally like Naruto and Fū anyway, a tiny bit more then Naruto and Hinata. Also, I paired together Yugito and Killer Bee as well.**

**So, please comment and stuff. I'll make the next one sometime soon.**

**Yes, I did change all of this a bit. I've had school to worry about and stuff, so I'm busy. But, I'm working on these as much as I can.**

**Also, yes, I did slow the relationship down a bit and I did make Gaara more present. I felt a hurried relationship would make the fan fiction lose one of it's driving forces quickly. So, the plot is going to include Gaara as another main character in this story as well.**

**Chapter 2 will be released when I get the chance.**


	2. Chapter 2: Teaching

**Well, time for Chapter 2. In this, just a warning, the time this takes place is going to jump around, but it's all mostly connected.**

Naruto pushed open the door and threw his bag onto the ground. He thought angrily, _Damn it! Nobody even recognizes my improvement! Not a single person even commented on how much I've done! It's all about Sasuke, Sasuke, Sasuke!_

He then looked at his clock and realized what time it was. Cursing to himself under his breath, he bit his finger, then began to weave hand signs quickly. He made the final hand sign and slammed his palm onto the floor. A small wisp of smoke formed, but little else. He growled slightly, then slapped his hands together again. However, instead of weaving the hand signs, he gathered his chakra, tapping into the demon fox's chakra.

A few moments later, he noticed a small red aura form around himself. He grinned, then he re-weaved the hand signs and slammed his palm into the floor, smoke flying out. As the smoke cleared, two figures appeared. Naruto smiled when Yagura and Utakata walked out of the smoke.

Yagura looked at the remaining traces of Naruto's chakra aura and said, "I see you still can't use the Summoning Jutsu without tapping into the Demon Fox's Chara, huh? I thought I warned you about carelessly using this chakra. Did you deliberately ignore me?"

Naruto said, "Hey, I had to do it. What else did you want me to do? I don't have the chakra to summon you guys alone, so I need to use the Demon Fox's chakra. How about _you _give me a better idea?"

Yagura smiled and said, "Oh, well, I'll forgive you. I'm just kidding, I'm not mad. So, you have been practicing summoning the Demon Fox's chakra up to one tail, I believe?"

Naruto shrugged and said, "Yeah, I suppose. It's not too hard to do. I just wish I could summon more then one tail. Then I could blow everyone else away!"

Utakata said gravely, "Naruto, you are not supposed to use this power for your own gain. I thought we warned you of this!" His expression then softened and he continued, "However, you are lucky. We're going to try and help you unlock the second tail. With our help, of course."

Naruto's eyes lit up greatly and he said, "Sweet! I can learn how to unlock the next tail? This is awesome! Now I'll be able to do so much more! This is going to be so great!" He began to smile widely and get ready for the process.

However, before Naruto could even get ready to begin the process, Yagura held up his hand and said, "Oh, no, not just yet, Naruto. This isn't like trying to unlock the first tail. This tail will be much harder to unlock and control. We're going to need to set the place up so we can do this successfully."

Yagura nodded at Utakata, who placed his hands together and formed a few hand signs. Utakata then flipped his bubble blower into the air, making hand signs while it spun in the air. He grasped the blower and said, "Water Style: Demon Repression Bubble Jutsu!"

He then breathed calmly into the blower, creating some bubbles. The bubbles soon floated together, forming three tall towers. He then clasped his hands slowly, and the bubbles solidified, each having symbols form on the outside of each.

Naruto smiled and said, "Whoa, that is cool!" He looked around at each, then turned and said, "So... what are these towers supposed to do?"

Utakata said, "They are supposed to suppress the demon, both inside and outside of your body. As you begin the process, these towers should keep the Fox's power low enough for you to work on the next tail. If you can't seal it and you lose control... well, let's just say we should be render you unconscious successfully."

Naruto suddenly paled and said, "Oh... uh... well, that's good, I guess. Not that I really want you guys to try and do that..."

Yagura held out his hand, forming a hand sign with his other hand. His outstretched hand suddenly transformed into the shape of three tails, which wrapped slowly around Naruto. Yagura said, "Here, I'll add some aid into this process. When you enter and attempt to extract the tail, I'll use the Three-Tails to hold back the Nine-Tails."

Before Naruto could even start the process, a feminine voice said from the tails, "Ah, you are the Nine-Tails' host, huh? He always was a weird one. I guess we can finally get back at him, huh? Let's rough up his container."

Yagura sighed loudly and said impatiently, "No you don't. You are not to harm Naruto, Three. I thought I told you, we're helping him, not killing him."

The tails spoke once again, "Oh, fine, be that way. Just be happy I'm under your control, or I'd crush the kid's head like a melon. At least I get to torment that dumb old fox. So, let's go. I'm bored!"

Yagura sighed and said, "Well, sorry you had to hear that, Naruto. She's a bit of a problem. She wants me to kill the other Jinchūriki, she pretty much hates all of the other tailed beasts. I command her successfully, but she's still an issue. Let's go."

Naruto nodded, then closed his eyes and focused. Within moments, he then saw red creep into the darkness, then a rush as he arrived in what he saw was a sewer. Disappointed by the lack of change from the last time he visited the demon fox's lair, he stepped forward, looking for the fox's sealed area. He noticed multiple flashes of light to his right and rushed down a hallway. Turning at an intersection, he saw a battle that left him stunned.

A giant turtle stood closest to him, launching waves of water from it's three tails and holding onto a red-furred tail connected to a being in a large cage. The being, although it's form was blurred from the distance, was most definitely the Nine-Tailed demon fox. It struggled against the pull on it's tail, launching orbs of concentrated chakra at the turtle, which deflected the worst of the blasts with it's shell.

The turtle faced Naruto and said, "Listen, kid! I know I've got this guy, but he's a tough old bastard. This guy won't quit until either he or we are finished. So we've gotta extract the tail. If you have some sort of way of disconnecting the tail, then do it now, before he throws me off!"

Naruto nodded, then rushed toward the cage. The fox, although he noticed Naruto, didn't attack the kid, his attention focused on the turtle that stood before him, hoping he could use the blasts to force the turtle to release her grip. Naruto leaped into the air and preformed a few hand signs, gathering his chakra. He slammed his palm into the fox's tail, releasing the gathered chakra, shouting, "Wind Style: Cutting Gale!". A rush of wind flew from his palm, cutting into the tail. However, it went only a few inches deep before being stopped.

The fox glared at Naruto and said, "Oh, you cheeky brat! Trying to unleash a wind jutsu and cut through my tail, huh? Well, I won't let you toy with me again!"

The fox's mouth fell open, and a large orb of chakra gathered around it's open jaws. It fired the burst of chakra, striking the location Naruto had been a few moments ago. Although Naruto had managed to dodge back a few feet, the blast threw Naruto from the battle, and he collided with the three-tailed turtle.

The turtle looked at Naruto and said, "I see you can't quite reach him, huh? Why can't you?"

Naruto stood up and said, "He's a tough one. I can't manage to get past him with the chakra I've got, and not even the One-Tailed Cloak can protect me from getting struck by that blast head on!"

Yagura's voice then echoed from somewhere, saying, "Hold on, Naruto. We may be able to get Utakata in there for just a moment, but it'll be hard! He'll only be able to help for a few seconds, but you need to take care of the tail and get the heck out! Go now!"

Naruto rushed toward the tail, leaping into the air, and the Nine-Tails, smiling at Naruto, prepared another burst of chakra. Right as the fox was about to fire the chakra, Utakata's form appeared in the cavern above the fox. He gathered a bunch of red chakra into his hand, then he struck downward onto the fox's jaw. The burst of the chakra, no longer facing Naruto, passed right under Naruto's feet. Enveloping himself in the One-Tailed Cloak, he preformed his Cutting Gale jutsu again, the power enhanced. The wind sliced through the tail cleanly, and Naruto, descending from his jump, absorbed the tail into his body.

As he descended, the Nine-Tails shook off Utakata, who vanished into the darkness. It growled menacingly and opened it's mouth, and a large orb of chakra began to form in it's maw, much faster then it had before. Before the Three-Tails could react, the Fox had already launched an orb at Naruto, and it was aimed right at him. Yagura shouted out, as if desperate to save him, "NARUTO!"

The orb struck Naruto's form head on, and the resulting burst of energy blinded both the Fox and the Turtle. As the light began to fade, everyone was shocked to see Naruto standing on the ground, his right had held outward. Around that hand was the remnants of a bit of red chakra.

The chakra quickly vanished, and Naruto hung his arms limply, panting heavily. He glanced upward and shouted out, "Yagura, quickly! I'm all out of chakra here! Get me the hell out of here before this thing fries me to a crisp."

Yagura's voice echoed throughout the Fox's lair, "Ah, of course, Naruto! Give me a second, I'll get you out!" Naruto then felt a jerking motion, and his vision turned white just as the Fox reached to attack him one more time. There was then a rushing feeling as Naruto regained consciousness.

Naruto lay on the ground, and he looked up at the two ninja surrounding him. He laughed, exhilarated, and said, "Hey, guys. Guess I did it successfully, huh? We beat the tail right off that dumb fox!"

Yagura and Utakata both chuckled kindly and Yagura helped Naruto onto his feet. Yagura said, "So, you did it, huh? Managed to take it all the way to tail two... I'm impressed. It took me a few months do go up to one tail, and you can use two in only four months of training."

Utakata waver his hand dismissively and said, "Well, at the same time, your demon only had three tails. His has a lower chakra distribution per tail, so you'd expect it to be easier."

Naruto shot an angry glare at Utakata, then said, "Um... Yagura... sensei... I have a question for you."

Yagura nodded calmly and said, "How may I assist you, Naruto?"

Naruto said, "Can you help me learn how to make clones? I mean, I've never been able to make a partially decent one, and..."

Yagura smiled sadly and said, "No, Naruto. You see, we all have a difficulty with clones. None of the Jinchūriki can do a proper one, we always need to substitute the regular kind of clone with a unique clone jutsu of our own, like my Water Clone."

Naruto scratched his head and said, "Huh? How... does that work?"

Utakata held up his hand and said, "You see, as you know, it takes energy, our chakra, to summon up a clone of any type. But, us jinchūriki are of a physical chakra type. We need to form our chakra into physical bodies, such as water or earth. However, some jutsu, like the clone jutsu in particular, require the user to summon non-real bodies for the jutsu to work. It is that area which we find the most difficulty in our usage of clone techniques."

Naruto nodded his head for a moment, thinking to himself. He then looked down at the floor and said, "Utakata, you pretty much made no sense there."

Utakata stared at Naruto, completely flabbergasted. Yagura, however, chuckled lightly and said, "Ah, hahahahaha! Naruto, you are such a unique kid, let me tell you. Well, you see, to put it simply... we're generally not good at making illusions... we're more of the direct type, you know?"

Naruto nodded and said, "That makes much more sense, Yagura-sensei! Utakata... why can't you ever be like Yagura-sensei?"

Utakata glared angrily at Naruto and grabbed Yagura by the arm tightly. He said, "Mizukage-sama, as your personal guard, I must insist that we leave Konoha so as to not risk discovery. We would best be getting out of here right now, Mizukage-sama."

Yagura frowned, but chuckled calmly at Utakata's pissed-off expression and said, "Fine, fine, calm yourself, Utakata. Very well, I suppose we should. Bye, Naruto!" Yagura then clapped his hands together, and the two Mist ninjas both vanished into a burst of dust.

_3 Days Before the Graduation Ceremony_

Naruto, Fū, Gaara, and Han all stood, the three trainees facing the chunin before them. The all lowered their hands, panting heavily, as Han nodded respectfully to them. He then took of his right arm gauntlet, revealing a couple of slash wounds across his arm. Han said kindly, "You three are progressing at a remarkable level. I have honestly never seen such well-prepared ninja before. I suppose your wind training is done for today. I must be off."

Naruto shook his head in disappointment and said, "Han-sensei, are you sure you have to leave? You were here for only an hour! You could train us so much more!" Fū nodded in agreement, while Gaara shrugged calmly.

Han looked at all of them and closed his eyes. He grunted, "No, Naruto, I cannot stay much longer. I am seeking a villain from my home village. Although the village and it's matters are not that important to me, this man has stolen a very significant manuscript of mine. It contains some of my most powerful jutsu. The scroll is written in code, and from what I know, this man is not much of a encryption master. However, I do worry that he may have powerful allies, and may find a way to crack the code."

Naruto nodded and said, "Han-sensei, do you think we'll see you again? You're the best master of wind jutsu we know!"

Han shrugged and said, "Maybe. Remember, you can call me at any time with the summoning scroll. But, also remember, my mission is very important, so call me only if it is necessary."

Han made a few hand signs, and placed his palm gently against a wall. In a burst of smoke, a figure appeared in Naruto's house. The figure stepped calmly out of the smoke, coughing slightly. He smiled at the sight of the four ninja and said, "Hey, hey, nice to see you all here."

Naruto clapped his hands together happily and said, "Hey, Rōshi-sensei! You're here! We did it, Rōshi-sensei! We finally managed to use the Roaring Gale technique! It may take myself, Gaara, and Fū, but we did it!"

Rōshi smiled happily and said, "You did, huh? Great job, you three, great job! Especially you, Naruto. You are progressing so quickly, it makes this old man feel so young again!" Naruto then hugged Rōshi tightly, and Rōshi laughed warmly.

Han sighed and coughed loudly. He said, "Rōshi-senpai, you did tell me you'd be taking me back soon. You did not lie, did you?" He crossed his arms and looked at Rōshi calmly, who was tapping his chin with a curious expression.

Rōshi smiled calmly and said, "Han... why don't I just send you back to my house on your own? These three did very great today! I'm sure they could go for a nice bowl of ramen, hm? What do you say?"

Han looked carefully at Rōshi, then growled angrily and shouted, "You're serious? I swear, you are one annoying bastard of an old man!" The three kids gasped in shock, but Rōshi just stared at Han calmly. "Don't you get it? I'm on a very serious mission here! You're probably going to put me a good seven hours behind my target!"

Rōshi shrugged calmly and said, "The man's path could have been lost a few hours ago. There is no difference from where you start, if you look at it from my perspective."

Han glared closely at Rōshi for a few moments. He then sighed and said, "Fine, fuck you. Rōshi, just send me back with to your house, okay?"

Rōshi shrugged calmly and placed his hands together. He then slammed his palm into Han's stomach, and Han vanished in a burst of smoke. Rōshi then turned to the three kids and said, "Come on, then. Let's get to that ramen store before it's out of the good ramen!"

Naruto and Fū cheered loudly, while Gaara smiled calmly and nodded at Rōshi's request. Naruto opened his door for Rōshi, and Rōshi nodded kindly to Naruto as he left. Gaara and Fū followed quickly as well, and the three junior ninja talked adamantly with Rōshi about their new jutsu.

After a few minutes of walking, the four jinchūriki finally reached Ichiraku Ramen. Teuchi looked up at the sounds of footsteps and said, "Hey, Naruto! It's been a while since you've come by here." He quickly noticed Fū and said, "Oh, you have a lady with you. If I were you, I'd be taking her on a date to that dango shop down the road."

Fū and Naruto both turned a deep shade of red, and Rōshi laughed at their embarrassment. Fū was the first to regain her voice, saying, "W-we aren't g-going out! A-and, b-besides... well, I don't really like girlish foods. I'm a pretty big ramen fan, myself!"

Teuchi stared at Fū for a moment, shocked. He then turned to Naruto and said, "Naruto, I don't care who you may interested in at the moment, but drop all those ideas right now. You'll never find a better girl then this one!"

Naruto and Fū blushed even deeper, and Gaara subtly glared at Teuchi. Rōshi chuckled at their words and said, "Oh, please, do calm yourself, good sir. As much as I like a good joke, my pupils don't. They can ask me to take them some place else..."

Teuchi scratched the back of his head and muttered, "I... I guess I'll just take your orders, then."

Rōshi said, "Ah, yes... I think Naruto and Gaara should have the fish ramen today... Fū will have a nice bowl of pork ramen... and I'll have the largest bowl you have of wonton ramen... and maybe a bowl of buttered corn ramen... and a miso ramen."

Teuchi stared dumbfounded at Rōshi, who smiled back kindly. Teuchi shrugged and said, "I've given up understanding anyone who eats ramen, they're all different." He turned at walked off to the kitchen.

After Teuchi was out of earshot, Naruto turned to Rōshi and said, "Hey, you know Gaara and I both like pork ramen! Why do you have to give us a helping of fish ramen?"

Rōshi sighed and said, "Well, you both need it to replenish your chakra. You see... you all have different types of chakra usage. Fū is the most balanced, but you and Gaara drain your own chakra extra quickly, or so Han often tells me. In fact, your drainage is terrifying, I'm sure you'd have passed out three times over without the chakra from the demons. Gaara is the same case."

Naruto thought for a moment and said, "Oh... but... Yagura-sensei told me that we can replenish chakra through consumption of most foods. So why fish instead of pork?" 

Rōshi thought for a moment, then said, "Oh... um... well, how about I'm just giving you fish because I am a grumpy old man who would rant on for a few minutes unless you agree to eat fish?"

Naruto frowned, but shrugged and said, "Okay, sure. Let's go with fish. Why not, it's not too bad." Gaara nodded in assent, and Fū giggled at the spectacle.

Teuchi returned at that moment, followed by Ayame, placing the ramen in front of the four ninja. Before the ninja could begin eating, though, Teuchi asked Rōshi, "Hey, I could have sworn I've seen you before. Tell me, do I know you from somewhere?"

Rōshi stroked his beard for a moment, then said, "You might have. I am a villager of Iwagakure, and I did break through the front lines of Konoha once before, during the war. Although I was driven off by Minato, I was pretty intimidating person back then."

Teuchi gaped in wonder and said, "You... you were that guy? Rōshi, the Turtle of Fire? I... wha... what are you doing here?"

Rōshi shrugged and said, "Well, judging by what I see, it's eating dinner with my pupils and, presumably, paying for said dinner. I mean, war's over. I'm just here to spend time with these kids."

Teuchi paused and said, "Fine, be that way. I take it these kids ain't from around here, are they?"

Rōshi nodded and said, "Yeah, the guy is from Sunagakure, and the girl is from the Hidden Waterfall Village. And, seeing as we haven't been arrested, there's no problem with us being here, now is there?"

Teuchi stroked his chin and shrugged, walking away from the group. Naruto looked at Rōshi and said, "No way, you were seriously a legendary ninja in the past? That is awesome! But who was that Minato guy Teuchi mentioned?"

Rōshi leaned back in his seat, staring at Naruto for a moment. He reached over and picked up a wonton with his chopsticks, placing it in his mouth, chewing calmly. He swallowed and said, "He was a pretty impressive ninja. Quite a good man in both combat and in morals. I'm not surprised most of you don't know his name. For most people, he was known as the Fourth Hokage."

Naruto, Fū, and Gaara all stopped dead, their food inches away from their mouthes. Naruto said, "N...no way! You're kidding me, right? You are seriously telling us you were a rival to the Fourth Hokage himself?"

Rōshi chuckled calmly and said, "Yeah, like our server just stated, we battled quite a bit. He was quite the combatant, I don't remember anyone I've ever fought to be nearly as strong as him... well, actually, I stand corrected. The First and Second Hokage were quite stronger then Minato..." Rōshi chuckled and patted Naruto the back, adding, "Though I don't know why you call him by his professional title. I'd be pretty weirded out if MY son called me by a professional title."

Naruto spat out all his ramen, and looked at Rōshi in shock. Fū and Gaara also did so, and Rōshi stared at all of them, a bit confused. Naruto said, "Man... you gotta be lying. My dad... you're telling me my dad was the Fourth Hokage?"

Rōshi scratched his beard and said, "Yeah, didn't you know that? I mean, think about it. Your hair is almost entirely similar to his, you were born the same day he and his wife died, and you were orphaned from birth. It'd make sense."

Naruto sat still and said, "No... you can't really mean this. This is just... too much. You... you've got be joking."

Rōshi chuckled solemnly and said,"Ah, bad time, I guess, to pop this point out. But it's true, he is your father. I am a bit ashamed that the village never told you, but people were always idiots when it came to Jinchūriki I'm sorry you never knew."

Naruto said, "Jeez, if that's true, my dad ruined my life. I'm the target of so much hate and disrespect from the village. Why would he willingly do this to his own son?"

Rōshi smiled and said, "He was a man of personal sacrifice. He knew what this would do to you, you know. But, deep inside, I'm pretty sure he was willing to do this, because of his views and the views he knew you would adopt. He told me, one time, all Konoha shinobi would rather see their own demise then enact another's. That's probably why he chose you over a random villager off the street – it just would not be the right thing for him to do, to make his own burden's someone else's. He probably even felt sorry as he died for giving you this fate."

Naruto paused to look at Rōshi, and he smiled calmly. He said, "Yeah, he probably did. I really am angry at him, but I would probably have done the same exact thing, in his place... I suppose. In any case, let's stop talking about this. It feels... weird to discuss this."

Rōshi nodded and said, "You know, Naruto, soon you'll be graduating from the academy. Same with you two, Gaara and Fū. Don't expect life to get that much easier once you guys graduate."

Naruto, Fū, and Gaara all nodded and smiled at each other. Naruto said, "Yeah, of course we know. But that won't stop us. We'll be the cream of the crop this year, just you wait!"

Rōshi nodded kindly to Naruto, then as they all slurped eagerly on their ramen, thought to himself, _Minato... you made the right choice, I think. Maybe you screwed up his life a __bit... but he's making good friends like this. I'll see what I can do with him..._

**INFO TIME! (Because I feel the need to explain)**

**Well, now, I must apologize for my lateness (XD). You see, I had to struggle with both my classes (I was taking a college course in 12th grade, how do you think I feel?) , and when I moved past that, I got a small inspirational block, which I spent time trying to resolve by working on a Pokemon Special Fan-fiction. Which worked... until my homework load increased even more. Though, luckily, said load is dying down quickly, so I'll be more active.**

**And, some sad news, I'm going to be putting my Pokemon fan fiction on hold, due to my extreme mental blocks on it. But, rest easy, this one will continue, stronger then ever.**

**Now, because I brought back Fū, I realized something: she's going to need a team. Either that, or she'll need to be such a Mary Sue that she'll be able to enter the Chunin Exams alone. I'm not going to even go INTO the area of making Mary Sues, so I'd like to hold a contest among my loyal readers: A fan character contest, for Fū's teammates and Jonin leader. Truth be told, they won't be THAT major, but still... I need them. So, please fill out a character sheet and either leave it in a comment or send me a message with it. The top two Genin will be made into Fū's teammates, and the Jonin will be their leader. Here are the guidelines:**

**Name – **

**Age –**

**Appearance – (try and be as descriptive as possible. The more descriptive, the higher the chance of acceptance)**

**Personality – (try to be descriptive here. Explain some things, I'll want a lot to work with)**

**Jutsu Affinity – (explain what element they're best with: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, or a combo of two. Feel free to even name their jutsu affinity. Or just make up one on your own that you like that's not even one of the five [like Heat Release, Blade Release, whatever]. Just make it reasonable)**

**Known Jutsu – (just name some basic techniques that fit the ninja in question. Things like Fireball Jutsu for Fire users, Wind Blade for wind users, etc. Also, if your ninja has his own unique affinity, feel free to add in a technique of your own design [but no cheap techniques])**

**Rank: Genin or Jonin**

**Back story – (please note that while the character doesn't need one to be accepted, it may be a nice thing to have. Adds some depth. But keep said past reasonable. And do recall, said team will come from the Waterfall Village as well)**

**As for the Jonin, feel free to make the ninja more extravagant. Please get back to me on this, and I'll announce the winners and their characters in Chapter 3.**

**Also, if anyone has any questions, feel free to post a question in your comment, and if I can answer it, I shall do so.**

**In other news, my new favorite Naruto couple is now NarutoXFu, for reasons probably related to who-knows-what. But, fanon wise, I kinda like the idea of them now, more so then HinataXNaruto. It may sound odd, but I felt like I should establish this now, and get rid of any potential 'This should be Naruto and Hinata, not Naruto and Fū!' comments. Yes, it's odd. But, like my preference for SoujixChie, I'm sometimes a fan of the... less shipped couples... it's my way, y'know?**

**Please keep an eye out for my fan fictions, loyal followers.**


	3. Chapter 3: Collaborating

Jinchūriki Alliance: Chapter 2

Collaborating

~~~X~~~

_Graduation Exercise_

Naruto stood angrily, facing the masked face of his sensei, Kakashi Hatake. To his right stood Sakura Haruno, and to his left stood Sasuke Uchiha. Kakashi scratched his chin calmly and said, "Well, they did say those who are the loudest tend to be the weakest... So, let's just ignore the dunce and continue, alright?"

Naruto shouted out angrily, rushing forward, his hand clutching a kunai tightly in his hand. He barely got four steps forward, however, before he felt a hand tightly grip his own. Before he even knew what was happening, his own kunai, still gripped by his hand, was pointed at the back of his head, Kakashi right behind him, his hair held tightly by Kakashi's grip.

Naruto gasped, unable to turn to face Kakashi. Sasuke and Sakura had both fallen into defensive postures, slightly nervous. Kakashi sighed and said, "Relax, I didn't say go yet. But... you did come at me with the intent to kill me... so I'm glad you are taking me seriously. Keep up that feeling, and you'll do fine."

He released his grip carefully, and Naruto stepped back, feel his eagerness increase. Kakashi shrugged and said, "Okay... go!" Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi all leaped away from that spot, running in different directions.

As Naruto leaped away, he felt an urge to rush back to the battlefield and face Kakashi, one on one. However, as that impulse passed through his mind, he felt a piece of memory fly through his mind.

_"Naruto, remember, being the fastest ninja in the world means nothing if your enemy knows you are coming, and can adequately defend. Remember, if you're up against an enemy who you can't beat under your own power, hiding is best for you."_

Han's words echoed in his mind, and Naruto continued his rush to a hiding spot. He found a nice large tree, and leaped behind it, concealing himself from view. He stood calmly, watching Kakashi, who stood calmly in the open. He thought calmly about what to do next.

After a few moments, though, he felt that calmly considering strategy wasn't going to work, and he decided to instead make a plan on the fly. He placed his hands together, weaving the hand signs of the Shadow Clone jutsu. A small burst of smoke appeared around him, and a perfect Naruto duplicate appeared before him. He nodded to himself, and said, "Alright, listen. Here's the plan... I'll sneak up behind Kakashi-sensei... while you pretend to be me... we'll corner him and use the Shadow Clone Jutsu to take him out!"

The Shadow Clone nodded and rushed out of the trees while Naruto crept around to an area where he assumed he'd be able to attack Kakashi. He heard his clone shout, "Hey, Kakashi-sensei! I'm gonna beat you up, one-on-one, so you'd better be ready to fight the best of the best!"

He wasn't able to hear Kakashi's response, but seeing how his clone shouted back in anger, he could tell it wasn't complimentary. He hurried up, in the hope that his clone wouldn't be dispelled by the time he was in position.

By the time he reached a good area, he saw his clone laying on the ground, having taken quite a pounding. Kakashi was standing calmly, reading from an orange book entitled "Make-Out Paradise."

Naruto attempted to fight the urge to rush out and attack Kakashi, but failed and rushed out. The clone disappeared in a puff of smoke, and Kakashi turned around to see Naruto rush at him, creating five shadow clones as he rushed at him.

Kakashi, however, didn't even seem surprised as he grabbed one of Naruto's clones, swing it at the closest clone, dispelling them both in the collision. He proceeded to punch two more clones, then kicked the fifth in the chest, the three remaining clones disappearing in a puff of smoke. Throughout the entire attack, Kakashi's eyes hadn't moved once from the book he was reading.

Naruto paused, staring at Kakashi, almost dumbfounded. He then growled to himself angrily, forming a good seven clones to fight Kakashi. He then stood back as the clones attacked Kakashi, weaving a few more hand signs. He managed to finish the hand signs as Kakashi defeated all seven clones, and he ran at Kakashi, punching at Kakashi's face.

Kakashi swung his hand out, catching Naruto's wrist and pulling Naruto's attack out of the way. As Kakashi did so, he noticed a small humming noise in the air, and he threw himself and Naruto apart, dodging a Wind-based Jutsu Naruto had apparently just used.. Kakashi leaped away quickly, wondering what kind of talents Naruto had hidden.

Naruto stood up quickly, surveying the surroundings. He could tell his Wind Blade Jutsu had worked, but from what he could tell, he had completely missed his teacher. He angrily kicked at the ground, frustrated at his failure.

Much to his shock, however, he heard a small ringing noise. He looked down and, much to his shock, noticed a bell lying on the ground. He walked over to it, in order to pick it up, but upon trying to do so, was immediately launched into the air by a rope trap.

Naruto bobbed up and down in place for a few seconds, eventually coming to a rest, hanging upside down. Kakashi appeared from behind the bushes, walking over to where the bell lay. Picking up the bell calmly, he looked up at Naruto and said, "Yes, I'll admit you are a bit more talented then seemed to be. However, you certainly lack quite a bit of common sense, so you'll never stop me."

Naruto grumbled quietly to himself, looking at Kakashi. He shouted back, "Hey, hey, anyone could have fallen for that trap!"

Kakashi sighed and said, "No, not quite. In fact, the only people who actually would fall for a trap like that would be people who's idiocy know no bounds. Ninjas are supposed see the meaning within meanings, but someone like you really wouldn't have the capacity to-"

Kakashi's chiding was cut off as a bunch of weapons slammed into his side, lifting him off his feet. Naruto gaped in shock, but before he could shout out in surprise, Kakashi's body disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing only a log in his place...

~~~X~~~

Fū stood calmly, panting lightly as she held up a small crystal in her hand. To her right and left, two other boys held up their own crystals. Their instructor nodded approvingly, and she said, "Well, you guys seem to have next to no chemistry out of combat, but I will admit that, even though I wasn't trying my best, you three are still much better then any other three that I have ever trained before, at least in terms of teamwork."

The boy to the right of Fū, a light-skinned kid with ocean-blue hair in a ponytail, snorted lightly and said, "Well, it's true we did a good job, but if it hadn't been for that pettanko, we'd have managed to get those crystals much more quickly then before."

Fū bristled in anger, and she shouted angrily at the boy, "Hey, you know what, I tried my best, and got this crystal! And, anyway, you barely even worked with us at first! You were no better then the rest of us were, anyway, at least not until we worked together!"

The blue-haired boy shouted back, "Yeah, I know! But you were barely even helpful in the first place! Heck, I probably could have done this all without even bothering to use your help, you flat-chested weirdo!"

Fū glared at him angrily and said, "Oh, yeah? You sure you would have been fine? With the half-complete jutsu you use, I'd be more afraid of dying from laughter then actually being harmed by the technique!"

The boy glared right back at her and shouted, "You pettanko loser!" Fū flinched in anger, and brought her face right in front of the boy's face, staring at him right in the eye, red with anger.

The other boy on her team, a black-eyed kid with cornrow black hair, looked at the ongoing argument with slight disappointment. He turned to his Jonin instructor and said, "Excuse me, Sekoka-sensei? Not to sound like a bit of a jerk, but perhaps it would be best if we leave these two to their own matters."

Sekoka Shi looked to the third Genin and said, "Ah, yes... that would probably be the best course of action. Perhaps we shall go out for some ramen, in congratulations," Sekoka paused for a moment, pushing her black hair out the way so that she could point to the back of her neck. Her tone becoming much less calm, she continued "Although, if you dare use that jutsu of yours on me again, then you can pay for your own food."

The black-haired Lenin looked disappointed for a moment, but he eventually shrugged and said, "Okay, we've got a deal." He walked off with his sensei, leaving Fū to argue with her stubborn teammate.

~~~X~~~

Naruto sat on the ground next to Sasuke and Sakura, all three of them looking up at Kakashi, who stood calmly as he looked at a stone which was lying on the ground, the stone appearing to have carvings in it. He turned to the three Lenin and said, "You know, this stone... it has the names of people this village has considered to be among the greatest heroes in this village."

Naruto felt impressed to learn there was a stone that mentioned the heroes of the village, and nearly called out his desire to become one of those heroes. However, he felt a slight bit of a memory return to him as the word 'greatest' worked it's way through his mind.

_"Naruto... I know that we Kage are often considered to be among the most noble of people in our village, their 'greatest heroes'. I always disagreed with that 'greatest' terminology. You want to know something? In my eyes... Utakata is more of a hero then I can ever hope to be._

_ "He's fought off many ninja who aimed to assassinate me. I've never been able to count the number of times he's risked his life for my own. And you know what? The other ones, the one that don't have the luxury of surviving, they are the village's most noble of heroes: they are people who threw their lives away for the sake of others._

_ "In that sense... they are truly the 'greatest heroes' this world has to offer..."_

Naruto looked at Kakashi and said, "They're all dead, aren't they? Every single person who has a name on that rock... they all passed away in the line of duty, didn't they?"

Both Sasuke and Sakura glanced at Naruto for a moment, then they turned to look at the stone, both looking slightly more solemn then they had a few moments ago. Kakashi nodded at Naruto's words and said, "Yes... that is correct, Naruto... some of my closest friends have their names carved upon this stone..."

Naruto looked away, feeling ashamed he wanted to be a hero like the ones on the stone, that he was almost more concerned with a title then what the meaning of a great hero truly was.

Kakashi faced the students and said, "Listen, I've had a slight change of heart. I'll give you all one more chance... but only one more chance to try for the bells. We'll see how well your teamwork ends up. I'll even let you eat the lunches. However... Naruto cannot eat a single bite of food! If he does... you will all fail!"

With that, Kakashi leaped away from the area, heading for the trees. Naruto looked at his teammates, and trying to regain his pride, shouted out, "Ha, it's no sweat! I've got plenty of training! I can withstand this hunger!"

However, a few minutes later of watching Sasuke and Sakura consume their meals, Naruto felt his stomach growling, growing louder as it almost screamed for food. He sat as quietly as he could, trying hard to keep up a brave face as he felt his stomach slowly grow weaker.

After a few seconds of hearing Naruto's stomach rumble, Sasuke sighed and held out his box lunch to Naruto. Naruto started, and Sakura said nervously, "Sasuke... I feel bad for Naruto as well, but you heard what Kakashi-sensei said..."

Sasuke looked at Sakura and said, "Kakashi-sensei isn't here right now. It's just the three of us. If we're quick, we can feed Naruto in time, and Kakashi won't be any the wiser. And, besides, if we are supposed to be a team, then I can have teammate who'd just bring me down."

Naruto looked at Sasuke, a bit awestruck by Sasuke's words. Sakura looked troubled for a moment, but she gripped her box tightly and held it out to Naruto, nervously shouting, "I'm... I'm actually on a diet now... I'll be the one to give Naruto my food!"

Naruto felt touched by their kindness, but found himself unable to thank them. He smiled awkwardly and said, "Well, um... Sakura... I'm kinda tied up here... do you think you could possibly feed me?"

Right at that moment, however, the sky seemed to darken, and a large cloud of smoke formed quickly. Kakashi leaped out of the smoke, charging straight at them, an angry look in his eye.

Sakura squealed in fear, and Naruto shuddered, shocked at Kakashi's anger. Sasuke, however, grabbed a kunai, cutting Naruto's bonds apart. Naruto landed, and Sasuke shouted out to him, "Don't just stand there, Naruto! We've got an enemy to fight, so you better be ready to back me up!"

Naruto nodded, grabbing a kunai of his own. Sakura was still trembling, but she dropped into what appeared to be a combat ready stance. However, before they could fight, Kakashi paused and,a smile slightly noticeable in his eyes, said, "You pass."

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura stood there, feeling dumbfounded as Kakashi straightened himself. Sakura was the first person to find her voice, saying, "But... we were sure you were going to fail us... why didn't you?"

Kakashi said calmly, "It's true that rule-breakers are a very low sort of group. However, those that follow the rules so tightly that they ignore their own allies... they are the lowest form of scum."

Naruto paused, then grinned happily, feeling as if he just learned a valuable lesson. Kakashi held out his hand, his thumb pointed out, saying, "We are now the official Team Seven. Tomorrow starts the first day of our missions. It is time for us to all head back."

~~~X~~~

**Another KingOfStories01 Info Corner!**

**Well, here's the end of chapter 3. If you couldn't quite understand, well, I wanted to kinda let some of the Jinchūriki do their own thing, but since I wasn't quite sure how to do it, I decided to show off a bit of Fū's and Naruto's own graduation exercise.**

**Naruto, as you may have noticed, drew upon quite a bit of knowledge from his Jinchūriki allies. I felt that, seeing how Naruto tends to draw upon knowledge he gained from others (at least, I see he does that sometimes in the manga), I believed that the Jinchūriki would probably have quite a bit of knowledge to pass on to Naruto, and he would use their advice to help himself.**

**Also, as for Naruto being freed from the ropes, well, it always bugged me that they all got preached about working together as a team, and yet when Kakashi seemed like he was going to attack, no one even bothered to free Naruto to help them. That fact always bugged me: they were preached teamwork, yet ignored their own teammate when he'd be most needed!**

**That said, as you may have noticed, Fū had a very small one. The reason, for all of you, is that I didn't want to spoil Fū's team too much before the Chunin Exam. I wanted to pass out a few hints, and also give you the name of their instructor, but I really want to hold onto most knowledge for a while.**

**Oh, and as you may have gathered from what I just said, I mentioned Fū's next appearance will be at the Chunin Exams. You see, despite the character focus being on Naruto and Fū, I want to focus more on what Naruto's life is like with the Jinchūriki supporting him, and thus will chronicle most of Naruto's adventures.**

**The upcoming arc will be the Zabuza Arc, and we'll see what happens with Team 7. I ask you all to review my this story, and if you want to, I will allow you guys to send me ideas as to what you think I should do in that arc. Also, remember, if you review, don't flame, please be kind. But I am open to criticism.**

**And now, since I can't think of anything else to put down for this info corner, I guess I'll sign off for now. I apologize for the relatively short chapter, by the way. It was not intended, but I didn't know what else to put here.**

**... you know, I've always wondered, why do commercials for the Snuggie blanket always show people too inept to use a blanket while trying doing other things. I mean, whenever I typed this out at night, I would wear a blanket, and the blanket never inhibited my actions. Is it just bad advertising, or am I really that skilled with a blanket (I'm sorry, but I can't let this matter go. It's bugging me)?**

**Keep it real,**

**KingOfStories01**


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